Geneva: Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will face each other for the first time in more than two years after their teams, Barcelona and Juventus, faced each other at Champions League level.
The protective champions, Bayern Munich, face two potentially fatal matches against Atletico Madrid, while the tie also produced several other heavyweight matchups, adding Paris St-Germain opposite Manchester United and Real Madrid opposite Inter Milan.
Premier League champion Liverpool face Ajax Amsterdam and Serie Atalanta.
The draw, which took place in a luxurious rite in a convention hall on the beach in Monaco, was held this time in a Geneva television studio due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The start of the expired season, a domino effect from last season interrupted by the pandemic, means that the six-day game will be played between October 19 and December 9, a month less than usual.
Shortly after the ceremony, UEFA announced that spectators will be able to watch the matches, up to a maximum of 30% of the stadium’s capacity, if the local government allows it.
Barcelona and Juventus, who faced off in the 2015 final, teamed up with Group G alongside Dynamo Kiev and Hungarian club Ferencvaros, who are back in the level after a 25-year absence.
Ronaldo, 35, and Messi, 33, the two most sensible scorers in Champions League history with 130 and 115 goals respectively, have not met since the Portuguese left Real Madrid to join Juventus in the end of the 2017-18. season.
The duo have faced each other five times in the Champions League, the most recently in 2011 when Barcelona beat Real Madrid 3–1 in the semi-finals.
“It will be a massive clash with Barcelona and a desirable match because it will allow the world’s two most productive players, Ronaldo and Messi, to face each other,” said Juventus Vice President Pavel Nedved.
It will also be a difficult start for Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo, who took the reins in August when he had no training experience.
Bayern were the first team to leave the pot through former Chelsea and Ivory Coastkeeper Didier Drogba, one of the visitors to the draw, and they teamed up through Atletico Madrid, Salzburg and Lokomotiv Moscow.
Last season’s runner-up PSG and Manchester United will meet in Group H, recalling the England team’s memorable comeback two seasons ago when they won away goals after losing 2-0 at home.
A complicated organization ended up through RB Leipzig and Turkey’s Istanbul Basaksehir, one of 4 start-ups at the organization level alongside Rennes, FC Midtjylland and Krasnodar of Russia.
Group D will come with Liverpool and Ajax, who have won the festival 10 times among them, plus Atalanta, who reached the quarter-finals on their debut last season, and Midtjylland from Denmark.
The thirteen-time champion Real Madrid tied in Group B alongside Antonio Conte, Shakhtar Donetsk and Borussia Moenchengladbach. Inter beat Shakhtar 5-0 last month in the Europa League semi-finals.
Group E will be one of the top open groups, with Europa League champions Sevilla, Chelsea, Krasnodar and Rennes.
However, it can bring unfortunate memories for Sevilla coach Julen Lopetegui, who was fired as Spain’s coach at the team camp in Krasnodar two days before the start of the 2018 World Cup.
Group F is unpredictable with Zenit St Petersburg, Borussia Dortmund, Lazio and Club Brugge.
Manchester City will begin as the undisputed favourite for Group C with Porto, Olympiakos and Marseille most likely to fight for the spot at the moment.
Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, Salzburg, Lokomotiv Moscow
Real Madrid, Shakhtar Donetsk, Inter, Borussia Moenchengladbach
Porto, Manchester City, Olympiakos, Marseille
Liverpool, Ajax Amsterdam, Atalanta, FC Midtjylland
Seville, Chelsea, Krasnodar, Rennes
Zenit Saint Petersburg Borussia Dortmund Lazio Club Brugge
Juventus, Barcelona, Dynamo de Kiev, Ferencvaros
Paris St-Germain, Manchester United, RB Leipzig, Istanbul Basaksehir
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